We all love a sale, especially when it’s a win-win for consumers and taxpayers.
Tucked into the Republican-passed Working Families Tax Cuts (also known as the One Big, Beautiful Bill or OBBB) was a special provision clearing the way for the federal government to spur innovation forward: selling off spectrum.
While this move is great for telecommunications—as 5G is deployed for connectivity, collaboration, entertainment, healthcare, commerce, and much more—spectrum auctions may also provide a major revenue source for the federal government, perhaps funding tax cuts and national debt reduction.
By executing on Congress’s directive about spectrum, federal regulators will advance American innovation that improves our well-being and creates new opportunities.
What is spectrum?
Spectrum is the invisible radio frequencies that enable us to communicate anywhere and at any time. From mobile phones to GPS and TV broadcasting to radar, our telecommunications infrastructure is built on spectrum.
The wireless association CTIA explained:
The full spectrum encompasses a range of other frequencies we unknowingly interact with on a daily basis. Think of your radio dial. As you go up and down the dial, you locate the radio stations operating on particular frequencies. Now just imagine that radio dial expanding much, much further in both directions—that’s where you would encounter frequencies assigned to other uses, whether it’s mobile phones, or satellite TV, or air traffic control, or police radios. Spectrum is the entire range of frequencies.
The radio waves are divided into different bands that have varying characteristics and uses. Some are public, and some are private for commercial purposes.
It’s safe to say that our civilization operates on spectrum. As we develop new devices, applications, and technologies that depend on connectivity, the scarce resource of spectrum becomes all the more important.
Spectrum Auctions
Spectrum is a limited resource. The federal government, which owns about 60% of it, regulates how spectrum will be used or allocated. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) oversees the distribution of commercial spectrum. Meanwhile, government spectrum is overseen by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The government auctions off spectrum for commercial use. Over the past 30 years, FCC auctions of licensed spectrum have generated over $233 billion in revenue for the U.S. government. The revenue generated from spectrum auctions can be used wisely to fund government programs or to pay down the debt.
For the private sector, access to new spectrum is a game-changer in powering 5G and 6G technology expansion. The challenge for federal agencies will be to identify the right bands of spectrum, especially as some spectrum is used by other federal departments such as the Department of War and the Justice Department.
The One Big, Beautiful Bill nudged the federal government to once again make more spectrum available. This summer Congress and President Trump mandated that the federal government had to sell at least 800 megahertz of spectrum, including at least 500 megahertz of spectrum currently allocated for federal users for primary or shared commercial licensed use by July 2029. Although the deadline is five years away, the government must identify some of that spectrum for auction by 2027. Discussions are ongoing between agencies to ensure efficient and effective reallocation of spectrum.
Why It Matters to Me
Commercial spectrum is key to innovation as we continue to develop new devices and applications that keep us healthy or save our lives, connect us with each other and the world, start and grow businesses, help us learn about the world around us, educate our children, and make our lives more convenient.
We support spectrum auctions as a critical element to ensuring American innovation retains its leading edge in the world, while benefiting consumers and taxpayers at home. Smart policymaking should encourage the commercial use of spectrum while also balancing our safety and national security needs.